To ask people to tell everyone they know NOT TO FEED HORSES THAT DON’T BELONG TO THEM

[YeahBabyYeahYeah]

I won’t post the article as it made me cry and may be more triggering for others, but the most beautiful pony is in the papers today. He died because someone ignored “do not feed” signs and fed him a fucking potato.

Why oh why do some people (who in this case clearly know fuck-all about horses if they are feeding them whole potatoes) think it is OK to feed other people’s animals without their permission?

AIBU to think there should be more awareness about this, especially with more people going for walks at the moment. It is never OK to feed a horse unless the owner tells you it is OK and approves the food.

I was once bit on the tit by a horse. It proper mangled it. It was loose in a field and came over looking for attention. To be fair I did stroke it, and straight away it went for the tit, and did not let go til I stuck my finger up its nostril. It was excruciating. Up there with childbirth but blessedly shorter in duration

Turned out it was notorious, had bitten someones finger off. The owner didn't like the path on his land and the walkers that came with it so kept the horse as a deterrent.

my daughters will go for a dog if it comes into their field. They can kill a dog with one kick.

@Sideorderofchips. But am I right that you wouldn't ever put those horses in a field with a footpath running through it? Or should I never go in any horse field with a dog at all?

@YeahBabyYeahYeah

This pony was alive in the first lockdown. He isn’t now, *@Isadora2007* . So I think the message needs to be put out there more clearly somehow.

Horses are loved and looked after and fed a set diet by their owners. It’s not for the public to feed them treats (I can’t believe someone took grass clippings for someone else’s horse without asking!!).

For example I do think most people now know that dogs shouldn’t be allowed to eat chocolate when certainly this wasn’t as well known by non dog owners when I was little, so raising more awareness around this would be good.

YANBU @YeahBabyYeahYeah - Awareness is needed.

@hoodiemum

While there are experts to ask ... please could anyone advise: I occasionally run on footpaths through horse fields. With dog. I prefer to avoid, but if I have to, what's the best tactic if they come up to you? Walk slowly and ignore, with dog on lead? Stop and say hello and be friendly? Run as fast as you can get away? I'd prefer they just ignored us but sometimes they don't, and they don't seem to like the dog, although he does nothing to antagonise, as far as I can see.

Impossible to know as all horses are different. Personally I'd avoid a field with a horse that came up to me when I was running (my horses would ignore you)

Quick Guide to cut out and keep-

Does this animal in a field belong to me?

Yes-Feed it
No-Don't feed it

@Sparklingbrook

Quick Guide to cut out and keep-

Does this animal in a field belong to me?

Yes-Feed it
No-Don't feed it

Brilliant!

@hoodiemum

my daughters will go for a dog if it comes into their field. They can kill a dog with one kick.

@Sideorderofchips. But am I right that you wouldn't ever put those horses in a field with a footpath running through it? Or should I never go in any horse field with a dog at all?

We wouldn't, hoodie, if it reassures you, in fact with our one field that has a footpath running through it we are super careful with which horses are allowed to go into it, more so because of the aforementioned issues with them being fed and mauled around by children than dog issues, but absolutely I wouldn't ever put a horse that was scared or aggresive out in that field as walkers and dogs alike have the right to use it unmolested! But there are less responsible horse owners out there for sure as the PP that was bitten shows, hopefully you won't have any issues with the dog but that's why I say always keep him on the lead and if in doubt pick him up / get out of there asap as dogs can be vulnerable around horses feet, I've personally never known a horse intentionally hurt a dog but I have seen a small dog which was allowed to run around loose and get under a horses feet (it was his owner's horse so she really should have known better!) get pretty badly kicked when the horse panicked and stomped so please do be careful!

Blimey, @Belleende. Ouch.

@hoodiemum

my daughters will go for a dog if it comes into their field. They can kill a dog with one kick.

@Sideorderofchips. But am I right that you wouldn't ever put those horses in a field with a footpath running through it? Or should I never go in any horse field with a dog at all?

The problem is that horses are quite fearful creatures, it's self preservation. So if something frightens them, like a dog maybe barking when they are close, they can spin and kick. It's how they would survive in the wild. Whereas my horse I mentioned earlier is very protective of the others and he will actually chase a dog - fortunately he's not caught one. The other thing to be aware of, and another reason for not feeding them, is the aggro it causes between the horses. If they think a person is going to feed them they they will vie for position and lunge at each other. Not something you want to be in the middle of. It's a tricky one. I think people understand the need to be wary of cows, but not so much horses as most see them as lovely pets.

Also you just don't know with horses - they are unpredictable. You could put the easiest horse in the field with the footpath and after a week or so of constant treats from walkers they would be aggressive and bargy.

Saw the article about that pony. So glad my horse isn't near any public footpaths. Just can't trust the general public with a spoon these days, most are too daft/ignorant/cruel. Mind you, being on private land doesn't stop people, I know someone who lives in the middle of nowhere, her horses are set back off the road onto her land, quite obviously her land. People just wander in to feed the horses. Trespassing and they could kill the horses, which are bloody expensive.

@hoodiemum

my daughters will go for a dog if it comes into their field. They can kill a dog with one kick.

@Sideorderofchips. But am I right that you wouldn't ever put those horses in a field with a footpath running through it? Or should I never go in any horse field with a dog at all?

We wouldn’t put ours in a field with a path through it.

It is hard to say though, we have a dog and our horses are fine with her - I couldn’t guarantee they were fine with all horses though.

The only time ours have panicked around dogs is when DD was hacking on a bridle way and an off lead dog was allowed to bite at her pony’s legs and tail. She spooked and nearly trod on it

Our yard also has a field with a path through it and our YO is very careful about what horses she puts in there

Dont feed anything to anyone elses animals is a basic and simple rule. Aside from the potential to harm any owner with CCTV might come chasing you for a very very big vets bill.

Well the problem is @hoodiemum, that a horses reaction to a dog may have been caused by someone else being irresponsible with their dog and causing the horses to fear dogs more than they might naturally. Horses are prey animals and dogs predators, there's a natural dynamic at play there, although absolutely horses and dogs can live happily side by side with no problems, but horses are very much "Once bitten, twice shy animals " and it could be that a horse had been fine with dogs, until chased and it's not necessarily something the owner would even be aware of.
Horses, especially young ones, also play, My horse as a youngster put me in surgery by trying to 'play' with another horse and got me instead. Some horses are intrigued by dogs and want to play, but whether the kick is aggressive, defensive, or play is irrelevant really. It still causes damage. People have got to be aware that horses in fact are very similar to cows, herd animals, have a fight or flight instinct that even The best training cannot entirely remove, can be dangerous not through aggression but because they weigh half a ton and are 6 ft tall and have metal feet, and can cause an injury just by doing something that is totally natural and expected horse behaviour. I have had horses all my life, I have qualifications in their wellbeing and management, in their behaviour, but I would never feed or interfere with horses that aren't under my care.
The best advice I can give you is keep the dog on a lead, give horses a wide berth and ignore them, if you are regularly there, they'll learn you're not a source of food or fear and likely ignore you back.

Ours are not in a field with a footpath through. However thst doesn't stop people walking their dog off the lead next to the fence and the dog goes into the field. It happens more often than you would think. Horses can be completely fine and then a dog can get into the field and start chasing and the horse will react.

I saw this on fb so sad. His owner is clearly devastated

@Belleende that sounds so painful!

I agree with the posters who ask for more information in notices. I agree that some people will just ignore all the same but it is still worth it, most people won't know the dangers or about different feeding regimes and will take it on board. I don't think implying people are morons is helpful, just try to keep the information to the point and clear.

I have also now realised that not everyone who owns a horse is necessarily as knowledgable as they say, too.

I feel so sorry for the owner of the horse that died. They must have been heartbroken.

Sadly there is very little awareness of this issue. If you don’t grow up around horses, you may simply never know. Growing up, I would always take a carrot to feed the horse in the field that we would pass on our walk. My daughter did the same until I read on Facebook why we should not feed horses. Now we know not to feed horses and so we don’t do it but, if you’ve not been told, how could you possibly know? A carrot / an apple have next to no calories in them and a horse is a huge animal so most people will be surprised to learn that they can cause damage. I don’t like the nasty tone taken by people who assume that we should know this fact; it assumes we all grow up in privileged families that own horses.

“Feeders”
So bloody selfish
When I first began to ride I took carrots cut onto circles by mum.
The stable owner explained when we asked if it was alright to feed the ponies that it was , but only if the carrots were fed whole, because of risk of choking.
Feeding any equine needs the owner’s express permission.
Have heard of way too many equine deaths from grass clippings, yew ditto, ragwort - lethal when dry- being thrown over fences.

Horses in non horsey areas are particularly at risk, eg abutting housing estates where kids are likely to feed horses for fun.
A double fence is a good idea to keep a horse’s neck from reaching out to proffered titbits.

Titbits are not good for equine manners either.

Feed carrots in the food bucket, not from hand.

Maxelly I very much agree with your main point about there being a worrying separation between town and country but in "the old days" everyone would have been knowledgeable about horses because up 1910-20 they were everywhere, stabled among us in very urban settings and everyone would have been far more familiar with them and would have known how to behave around them. I can't link but there are photos of horses at Paddington station where hundreds of horses were stables vertically and coal merchants where delivery horses were stabled in among houses. Sadly all of that knowledge acquired over thousands of years has been lost in just over a century.

I think most horse owners do their best to be polite where the general public are concerned but it's difficult when people are so unaware of the potential dangers. I had a lady come along while I was grooming my horse who wanted her children to have a go. I had only had him a while so while I was as sure as anyone can be that he'd be ok with it, I didn't want to take any chances. So I let her children groom him one by one under my supervision (and didn't let them crawl all over him at once like they wanted to do) and although we took our time about it, she was quite snippy when I suggested that the horse had had enough after about 15 mins or so, and carried on taking photos, even though I explained why. In the end I had to tell them (gently) to stop as she did not. The children were lovely but I felt the mother was rude - probably because she had no idea of the sort of damage a 500 kg animal could do - so next time I will probably say an outright "no" and risk being labelled "entitled and unkind"; much better than a child getting injured.

Also agree about the dangers of horses' behaviour deteriorating if they are given treats all the time. My normally well behaved horse will get pushy if he even smells apples on my hands because he came from a riding school where people gave him treats all the time. Although I'm reasonably knowledgeable about horses, no way would I walk in to a field of strange horses with a bag of treats in my hand. You are asking to be mown down doing that. And things can get very bargy at the edge of the field or gate if people are constantly feeding them, even if it is just freshly picked grass.

I agree with Baycob. People think they are being kind and simply don't know they could make the horse sick. Why doesn't anyone simply put some information on the sign, explaining WHY they shouldn't feed the horse? Why bother to put up a sign at all if you're literally just going to write 'Don't feed the horse'. People clearly need to be told why.

I don’t know why anyone would feed someone else’s animal. It’s ridiculous. They are not wild animals, it’s not like feeding ducks at the park.

@WinniePig

Sadly there is very little awareness of this issue. If you don’t grow up around horses, you may simply never know. Growing up, I would always take a carrot to feed the horse in the field that we would pass on our walk. My daughter did the same until I read on Facebook why we should not feed horses. Now we know not to feed horses and so we don’t do it but, if you’ve not been told, how could you possibly know? A carrot / an apple have next to no calories in them and a horse is a huge animal so most people will be surprised to learn that they can cause damage. I don’t like the nasty tone taken by people who assume that we should know this fact; it assumes we all grow up in privileged families that own horses.

But would you be okay if I gave your child a biscuit? Or your dog a piece of chocolate?

Why on earth do you think it's okay to feed someone else's pets/livestock without their permission?

It's absolutely baffling.

And for all you saying it is uneducated not to know, PLEASE. Not everyone knows literallery every fact in the world about every topic. Get over yourselves

@WinniePig

Sadly there is very little awareness of this issue. If you don’t grow up around horses, you may simply never know. Growing up, I would always take a carrot to feed the horse in the field that we would pass on our walk. My daughter did the same until I read on Facebook why we should not feed horses. Now we know not to feed horses and so we don’t do it but, if you’ve not been told, how could you possibly know? A carrot / an apple have next to no calories in them and a horse is a huge animal so most people will be surprised to learn that they can cause damage. I don’t like the nasty tone taken by people who assume that we should know this fact; it assumes we all grow up in privileged families that own horses.

Oh for goodness sake. It's this entitled attitude which is so irritating. There have been many posts from people explaining why its not your place to feed.someone elses pet! I'm sorry, but animals are dying because people are so entitled that they feel its fine to give them a carrot or an apple (both can cause choking).